Indians block news photo agency

Sports writer for The Age

AUSTRALIAN publishers are fuming that they, like their English counterparts late last year, will have to restrict coverage of their national cricket team's tour of India because of unusually harsh demands from Indian cricket administrators.

Less than a week after ABC Radio confirmed it would not be having any commentary or reporting presence at the looming India-Australia Test series due to a dispute about the price and terms of broadcasting rights demanded by the Board of Control for Cricket in India, a key photographic supplier to Australian newspapers and websites, Getty Images, has had its request for accreditation rejected.

When a similar dispute arose during England's recent visit to India for a Test series, English publishers refused to use photographs provided by the BCCI. One newspaper sought to lampoon the BCCI by publishing rough child-like drawings to represent the matches.

The BCCI's rationale for banning Getty Images last year was it considered the photo agency's ''primary businesses involved the commercial sale and licensing of images rather than the supply of images to news publications for bona fide editorial purposes … [and] were duly rejected''.

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''The BCCI stands by its decision, which is based on the legitimate interest of prioritising and limiting stadium access to those persons and entities primarily involved in news reporting activities and, thereby, promoting the public interest in consuming news and editorial comment from diverse sources,'' it said in a statement in November.

Its stance was criticised by Fairfax Media's chief editorial director Garry Linnell. He described its approach as ''a complete rejection of the notion of a free press''.

''The arrogance of the Indian cricket board is breathtaking - but the far-reaching implications are simply Orwellian,'' Linnell said.

''Last time I looked, cricket around the globe has been struggling for relevance and legitimacy. If they want to kill the game as a global product and deny Australians the opportunity of seeing their own players, then such short-sighted behaviour will go a long way in achieving such an outcome.''

Linnell's stance was echoed by news agency Australian Associated Press, which in retaliation is likely to prevent newspaper reports from its reporter covering the series being published anywhere outside Australia and New Zealand and also refuse to distribute the BCCI's own photos, thus limiting publicity for the series.

In Australia radio stations that do not pay for broadcast rights are, like in India, forbidden from commentating or delivering match updates from within venues, although there is free access to after-match press conferences, which there is not in India. Furthermore, the BCCI's financial demands to ABC Radio were reportedly increased not only since Australia's past Test tour but also midway through negotiations for this tour.